Moments
by Amberle-chan
Summary: For a single moment, Kagome is completely vulnerable in the hand of fate. This time, her soul may break. (Ch. 1 edited 5805)
1. Default Chapter

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Inuyasha, but what I wouldn't give just to hug the stuffing out of him…

**Author's Note**: Thank you, Fujifunmum, for being my beta reader!

_Moments_

By Amberle-chan

Summary: For a single moment, Kagome is completely vulnerable in the hand of fate. This time, her soul may break…

Chapter One

He was ancient, so old that he could not remember his own age. Had a millenium passed? Perhaps two? He did not really care. He was certain he would live forever.

And then it happened, and the change was sudden, not gradual, as occurred with other humans. In the space of a year, his body, which had always meshed together perfectly with his strong, unbending spirit, turned on him. Muscles that had given him an athlete's lithe ability began to twist and sag, burning with pain even if he walked a short distance. Bones that had supported him through centuries of strength now ached unceasingly and became brittle.

He railed at the heavens and the gods. Why they did grant him such a long life only to turn him into a mound of feeble flesh in less than a year? He could not allow it. There had to be a way for him to return his body to its former vitality. He would find it. He was determined to live forever.

When he realized that he was dying, he sent his most trusted servant on a quest to search for the one spell or potion that would grant him the immortality he was seeking. He knew he could have joined with a demon to regain his youth, as others had done before, but he saw such people as weak. They were willing to sacrifice some of themselves when they turned their bodies over to a demon's possession. He was not willing to perform such an act. He would remain who he was; he would never give his soul to a demon.

After searching for several weeks, his servant returned with the news of the Shikon jewel and its power to grant its possessor any wish. He ordered his servant to retrieve it, but the servant was unable to obtain it. By the time the servant had reached the village where the Shikon jewel was interred, it had apparently been destroyed when its keeper had died and the jewel burned with her body. He ranted and raved for days on end, almost killing his servant in his rage. It was only the servant's undying loyalty to his master that saved his life.

Fifty years passed and with each passing day he felt the inevitability of his death, the loss of his dream of immortality. The gods may have granted him a very long life, but it seemed that as payment they required that he die a slow, lingering death. He knew he could have killed himself just to spite the gods, but his will to live was strong regardless of his treacherous body.

Then word came that the Shikon jewel had not been destroyed but shattered, and that the shards were being gathered together by another priestess and her inu-youkai protector. He began to research the power of the jewel shards. He realized that he did not need the entire jewel but only two or three shards to gain his immortality. He gave his servant the task of watching the priestess and her companions carefully for any chance to steal the shards she had. After the servant observed the priestess and his friends for a very long time, he returned to his master.

"You cannot take them from her," his servant said from the darkest corner of the room. "She is too well protected by Inuyasha. Every youkai who has tried is dead."

"I must have the shards if I am to survive. There must be a way," his master replied from where he sat near the firepit in the middle of the room. The orange glow of the dancing flames briefly lit against his face, revealing the yellowed skin sunk into a wrinkled mass of flesh above which a few gray hairs hung limply against a balding head.

"Only if we could destroy Inuyasha. But we are not strong enough. We would never make it past his sword."

"There must be times when she is not under his protection."

"Rarely, if ever," the voice from beyond the firelight paused for a moment. "However,…"

"Yes?" his companion prompted.

"There is a time when she does not have Inuyasha's protection. A single moment in time when she is completely vulnerable…."

* * *

Kagome grabbed her backpack and swung it across her shoulders as she hurried out of her Tokyo home with a quick "See you soon, Mama!" Her mother barely had time to acknowledge her daughter before Kagome ran across the yard and entered the small, ramshackle building that housed the shrine well. She smiled brightly as she slipped through the doors. Summer vacation had finally begun and, except for the occasional return home to restock supplies, she could spend the next several weeks in the past in Japan's feudal era. 

Kagome hurried down the stairs leading to the well and leapt inside its dark confines. She had been gone almost a week so she could finish her final exams, and she missed her friends, especially Inuyasha, whom she knew would probably be surly because she had been gone so long. She chuckled to herself as the pinkish light of the time slip enveloped her; Inuyasha was always grumpy, but she knew him well enough to know the truth. Underneath his obnoxious, rude, foul-mouthed façade lay a heart as golden as his beautiful eyes.

Her smiled brightened as the pink light engulfed her fully; she would be there in just a few moments.

Then, just as Kagome almost passed through the time slip completely, a talon-tipped hand latched onto the back of her neck. The sound of her scream bounced and echoed off the well walls…

* * *

Inuyasha chewed on a piece of a grass as he leaned against the wooden planking of the Bone Eater's well. He had been waiting nearly an hour for Kagome to appear, and he promised himself he would let her have a piece of his mind once she returned. She should have returned at least three days ago as far as he was concerned. "Damn that 'school' of hers anyway," he mumbled to himself. In the two years they had been searching for the Shikon jewel shards, school and studying had kept Kagome apart from him far too often. She had assured him that her school year would be over when she returned, and that she could spend the next several weeks helping him fight off youkai and searching for missing jewel fragments. 

Inuyasha stood up and stretched. It was a fine, early summer morning and the rest of the day promised to be just as lovely. He looked around appreciatively. His forest was very pretty during the summer. Two years before, he would not have noticed it. Kagome had changed him that much. She had taught him so much in the last two years, not just to observe the world around him more closely and with different eyes, but also things about himself. She had managed to slip past the walls he had created around his heart and soul, something that Kikyo had never done. He was not sure when that had happened; perhaps it had been that first day, the day she removed the arrow from his heart, the moment she had given him her unconditional trust that he would help her get away from Mistress Centipede.

He turned and looked down into the well. He was so tempted to jump in and bring her back here now, even though she was due back at any moment. He ached with missing her. And if he had changed a lot in the last two years, there were still some things that remained the same. He still did not have the courage to tell her how he truly felt about her. He needed her, more than he had ever needed Kikyo. When she was with him, he was stronger, and all because she had accepted him as he was and did not want him to be anything else.

"Kagome," he whispered into the summer breeze as he walked a few feet away from the well. As he had done a thousand times over the past week, he pictured her smiling face in his mind, her light giggling laugh in his ears. Did she realize how much he cared?

He turned as he felt the familiar pulse of the time slip behind him. Normally, he would have leapt down into the well to help Kagome out and to carry that monstrosity she called a backpack, but he just slid his arms into the generous sleeves of his haori. She had kept him waiting for too long and she could climb out on her own today.

He waited a moment or two for Kagome's voice to call out to him from the bottom of the well, but when he didn't hear her, he figured that she had returned to her own time again because she had forgotten something. That had happened way too many times before.

Inuyasha stepped closer and peered over the lip of the well. "Oi, wench, did you forget…Kagome!"

Inuyasha's amber eyes widened in fear as he saw Kagome's prone form sprawled at the bottom of the well. She wasn't moving. Inuyasha growled savagely and jumped down. Her backpack lay at her side, torn and ripped, its contents spilling out of its remnants.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha whispered as he knelt down by her side. She didn't move as he called her name. Her breathing was shallow and raspy. Inuyasha's heart clenched in dread. What had happened to her? He picked her up, cradled tightly against him as he leapt out of the well. He then laid her gently in the grass at the side of the well.

He growled low in his throat as he examined her. Her clothing was also ripped and torn in the same manner as her backpack, shredded by claws or talons. The chain that held the vial of jewel shards she always wore around her neck was missing, but then his growl grew into a whine when he saw the mottled, bruised, and abraised skin around the spot where the chain always lay. Someone had choked her.

Someone had tried to kill her. Someone had tried to kill his Kagome.

The whine turned back into a growling snarl. "_I'll fucking kill them_…"

He gently laid one hand against her cheek. "Kagome?" he said, his voice low and pleading. "Kagome, come on, you've got to wake up."

His anxiety escalated when she didn't stir. He shook her shoulder gently and called her name again, but still received no response. In a near panic, Inuyasha picked Kagome up, and with her enveloped tightly in his arms, he sprinted through the trees straight toward the village. As soon as its first buildings came into a view, he put on an extra burst of speed.

"Kaede!" he bellowed as he leaped into the village square. Not even waiting for a reply, he ran straight into the old priestess' hut, knocking the straw mat completely off the doorway as he burst through.

Kaede was just beginning to stand up as Inuyasha entered the hut. "Inuyasha, what in the world…?" she began to ask and then she saw the unconscious girl in his arms. "Kagome!"

Inuyasha kicked one of the folded pallets open with his foot, gently laid Kagome on it, and then fell to his knees by her side. "I found her like this at the bottom of the well. I think somebody tried to choke her." He couldn't keep the thought from burning through his mind again. _Somebody tried to kill Kagome…_

Inuyasha looked up at the old miko with pleading eyes. "She won't wake up. Please, Kaede, you've got to help her!"

Kaede immediately knelt by Kagome's side to her examine her. Just as she was checking the girl's pulse, Miroku ran into the hut. "Inuyasha, what's going on? Kagome!" he gasped when he saw her lying still on the pallet. "What happened?"

"I found her at the bottom of the well. I think she was attacked by a youkai," Inuyasha replied. "Her backpack's still there."

"I'll go get it." Miroku offered as he left the hut, knowing that Kagome's things shouldn't be found by anyone who didn't know her or what her possessions from the future were for.

"Take Sango with you!" Inuyasha shouted after the monk. "That youkai might still be around!" In the back of his mind, he knew that he was the one who should have gone with the monk, but there was no way in hell he was going to leave Kagome's side.

* * *

Miroku and Sango returned minutes later, both of them carrying Kagome's things in their hands, the remains of her tattered backpack slung over Miroku's shoulder. They placed Kagome's possessions in a nearby corner and hurriedly turned back to where an extremely worried Kaede and Inuyasha were still kneeling by the unconcious miko's side. Kagome still had not awakened. 

"I didn't sense any youkai in the area," Miroku said to no one in particular as he knelt on the opposite side of the pallet from Kaede.

"Well, there had to be," Inuyasha replied. "Kagome's jewel shards are missing." He pointed toward her bruised neck. "Whoever it is must have taken them while they were trying to kill her." He couldn't help the growl that leapt into his throat. "I'm going to kill them. They are so fucking dead." It was only then that he realized that he had not sensed any youkai near the well, either.

"Not all of the shards are missing, Inuyasha," Sango said. "We found this underneath her bag." She held out her right hand; on her palm, one shard sparkled briefly in the firelight.

Inuyasha reached and out took the shard, tucking it into his haori. He didn't say anything about retrieving the other missing shards, a testament to his anxiety over Kagome. Getting the other shards back was secondary to Kagome's welfare. He would get the other shards back when he killed the youkai who had hurt Kagome.

Shippou chose that moment to run into the hut at full speed. "Hey, is Kagome back yet…Kagome!" he screamed when he saw her lying so still on the pallet with all of her friends hovering over her.

Sango scooped the kitsune up in her arms before he could pounce on Kagome. He struggled in her grasp. "Let me go, Sango! What happened to Kagome!"

Sango sank to the floor with the little fox demon cuddled in her arms. "Shh, Shippou. Inuyasha found her like that. Now be quiet and let Kaede work."

Shippou ceased his wriggling and collapsed back against the exterminator with a whine. "Kagome…," he sobbed. He looked at the old miko with tear-filled eyes. "Will Kagome be okay, Lady Kaede?"

Kaede sighed as she sat back up from where she had been leaning over Kagome's unmoving form. The entire time since Inuyasha had brought the unconscious girl into the hut, the old priestess had been examining her, and in the past few minutes as they talked, she had one hand lightly pressed against Kagome's forehead as her other hand hovered over Kagome's heart. They all gazed at Kaede with fearful eyes.

"Except for the bruising around her neck and some other cuts and bruises, I cannot see anything else wrong with her, except…"

"Except what?" Inuyasha demanded. "Spit it out, old woman!"

Kaede turned her attention completely on Inuyasha, her sharp eyes boring into his gold irises. "It is as if Kagome's spirit is far away, so far that I can barely feel it. It is almost like she does not want to come back…or cannot."

Inuyasha fingers brushed down Kagome's hair, something he had been doing for the past several minutes. He gazed down into her still face. "She'll come back. She's gotta come back."

"There may be something I can do, but I will need help," Kaede said. She glanced up at Miroku. "Will you assist me, Master Miroku?"

"Of course, Lady Kaede," the monk replied. He lifted one hand to drift above Kagome's heart, the other was clutched around his staff that lay across his lap. Kaede placed her hand above his. Both the miko and the monk closed their eyes as they began to pray, letting their respective spiritual powers combine so they could seek out Kagome's spirit.

And the waiting began.

* * *

An hour passed and then two. Kaede and Miroku had not moved from where they sat as they worked and prayed over Kagome. Inuyasha was hard pressed not to jump up and pace around in his ever-increasing frustration at his inability to help in this situation, but he did not want to break their concentration. Shippou had fallen asleep in Sango's lap. 

"Why don't you go for a walk, Inuyasha?" Sango suggested in a soft voice as she brushed light fingers through the kitsune's fur. She coud not help but notice the inu-youkai's growing impatience. "I'll keep watch."

"I'm not leaving Kagome," Inuyasha spat out in reply.

Sango sighed. It was the answer she had expected. In the two years she had known Inuyasha and Kagome, she had watched them become closer and closer to the point that they were almost inseparable, even despite their constant bickering. Inuyasha had practically lived near the well in the past week while Kagome had been gone. Sango had caught him almost jumping inside a few times, only to remind him about his promise. Sango smiled as she remembered the argument that Kagome and Inuyasha had had before she returned through the well to her time. It was the same argument that they had almost every time Kagome went home.

* * *

"_A week! You can't go home for a week!" Inuyasha shouted. "You have three days, that's it, wench!"_

"_My exams won't take three days, stupid! They're going to take a week!" Kagome yelled back. She gasped out an audible sigh. "Look, Inuyasha, these exams are the most important that I'll take, if I want to graduate in three weeks. And I do want to graduate!" _

"_Keh!" Inuyasha snorted, turning his back on her, his arms across his chest. "After all this time, I still don't know why that school stuff is so important to you, Kagome."_

"_Because I need to know this stuff in my world, baka!" Kagome said vehemently. "How many times do I have to explain this?" _

"_Yeah, but you don't need to know it here!" Inuyasha declared._

"_But I may not be able to always come back here, Inuyasha!"_

_Inuyasha rounded on her. "We are not talking about that, wench!"_

_Sango and Miroku shared a grimace as they watched their friends argue once again, a safe distance away. The possibility that Kagome would not be able to return through the well at some point was a subject that Inuyasha absolutely refused to discuss. To him, the idea was simply unthinkable._

_Kagome sighed again and then decided to relent—a little. She could not give up going home for a week, but maybe she could work out a compromise. She placed one hand on Inuyasha's crossed forearm and peered up into his face. "Look, Inuyasha, I'll make a deal with you. You let me have the whole week for my exams, and I will spend the entire summer here with you, except for my graduation and re-supply trips. Deal?"_

_Inuyasha turned away. "The entire summer?" he asked quietly after a few moments of silence._

"_Yes, but you cannot come back for me. You leave me alone for the whole week. I see you at any time and the deal's off."_

_Inuyasha growled softly under his breath. Being without Kagome for a whole week was going to be pure torture. He usually couldn't stand it when she was only gone for a day, and her usual three-day visits home always pushed him to his limit, but for her not to be here for a whole week..._

_Then again, she would spend the whole summer here, with him. _

"_Deal."_

_Kagome came around to face him and smiled brilliantly. "Thanks, Inuyasha!" She then reached up and lightly kissed his cheek. Inuyasha stepped back in shock as her soft lips brushed against him. "I'll see you in a week." She turned and waved merrily at Sango and Miroku. "See you guys in a week. Bye!"_

_Sango and Miroku waved their goodbyes to her. Kagome dropped into the well and was gone._

* * *

Sango let her memory of that day a week ago float away. Kaede and Miroku were still in their trance-like state, their hands hovering above Kagome's body. Inuyasha was staring down intently into her face, one hand gently brushing her bangs off her forehead. "I should never have let you stay away a week," he whispered softly. "I should have gone to get you." 

Sango's eyes widened slightly. Inuyasha rarely, if ever, let his true feelings for Kagome be revealed in front of anyone. He really must be frightened for the girl. "I'm sure she'll be fine, Inuyasha," Sango tried to reassure the inu-youkai. "We all know how strong Kagome is."

"She'll have to use all of her strength to return now," Kaede said suddenly as she sat back with a ragged gasp. Miroku opened his eyes, his expression torn and weary with exhaustion.

Sango gently laid the sleeping kit down on a pallet and hurried to fetch two cups of water for the priestess and the monk. Inuyasha stared intently down at Kagome's still body and then brought his eyes up to lock with the monk's. "Miroku?" he asked quietly, trying to hide the fear he felt from his voice.

"Kaede and I have managed to call her spirit back, Inuyasha, but she will not return completely," Miroku replied after he took a sip of water from his cup. "There is still something wrong."

Inuyasha scraped his claws against the wooden floor, bringing up splinters. "Wrong?" he demanded.

Miroku turned to the old miko. "Did you feel it, Lady Kaede? Kagome's fright?"

Kaede nodded. "Hai, I did." She turned to Inuyasha. "We have called Kagome back, Inuyasha, but she is not yet free to awaken. She has been terribly frightened by something and now she is afraid to return."

Inuyasha moved so that he could place one hand against Kagome's cheek. "It's that youkai who attacked her. I know it is," he growled. He looked at Kaede with anxious eyes. "So how do we help her?"

"She needs to feel safe again," the old priestess said. "We must keep her warm and comfortable. Perhaps if we talk to her as she sleeps, she will realize that she is surrounded by friends and that it is all right to awaken."

"Stupid wench," Inuyasha muttered, as he pressed his hand against Kagome's pale cheek. "Doesn't she know that I'll always keep her safe?"

"It is not that easy, Inuyasha," Kaede said. "We can tell her that she is safe, make her feel safe, but in the end it is Kagome who will decide when sheis safe enough to awaken. That could be tomorrow, next week, or next month. It is all up to Kagome now."


	2. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Inuyasha, but I would love to scratch his ears.

**Author's Note**: I should have made things a bit clearer in the author's note in the first chapter of this story. This is a continuation fic (of sorts). I have only seen up to episode 110 of the anime, so any mistakes I make are my own, and I do apologize for them. This story does take place two years after Kagome released Inuyasha from Goshinboku. Naraku has not been found or killed as yet, and Inuyasha and his friends are still trying to locate the missing jewel shards.

I want to thank Jenna, Newbie GK, NP, and GoldAngel2 for being the first people to review this story. A special thank you goes to GoldAngel2 for her beautiful review of my story. She has always given me great reviews, and I am very grateful to her.

_**Moments**_

By Amberle-chan

Chapter Two

"You did not get all the shards!" his master raged at him in fury. "You told me that she had at least three or four of them!"

"I am sorry, Master," the servant replied as he knelt prostrate before his master. He did not cower in fear, however; after a thousand years in his master's service, he had grown used to his master's volatile, explosive temper. He would not die. His master had tried to kill him once, but then had stopped himself before the final blow, knowing his true worth only remained if he was alive. "One of the shards fell back into the time slip before I could catch it. Please forgive me."

He looked at his servant's kneeling form and snarled savagely at him, wishing he had the strength to beat him until his life had slipped down to its last trickle of blood.

He looked down at the two glowing shards in his palm. He took one of the shards and pushed it deep into hist chest as the exact point of his heart. He then took the second shard and pushed it into middle of his forehead. He waited.

The power hit him quickly, in a pulsing wave of light that surged through his veins. Suddenly, he felt life returning to long atrophied muscles, and for the first time in years, he raised himself off the floor without the assistance of his servant. His once stuttering heart was now beating strongly again, letting the blood flow freely through his arteries once more. He raised his arms above his head, feeling some of the vitality he had long missed returning.

But it was not enough. He knew that his youth had not yet returned, nor had he obtained his ultimate goal—immortality. He knew that he would need one more shard, perhaps two.

His servant was staring up at him in gap-toothed awe. He walked around his kneeling servant once, twice, thrice, enjoying the feel of his working muscles again. He then bent down and pulled his servant's hair hard by its scraggly ponytail. "You will bring me the other shards, do you understand me? I don't care how you get them! You will bring them to me or I will gouge out the rest of your face."

The servant raised what was left of his face to his master's eyes. The firelight in the room glowed orange against the wide, torn, puckered scar that lay across his forehead, down into his right eye socket, and to his chin. "Yes, Master," he choked out.

His master kicked him viciously in the side before he let go of his hair. "Good. Now fetch me something decent to eat and then afterwards you will bring me one of the maids. Prepare her well. She will stay the night with me." He left the room, still flexing his newly awakened arms and legs.

The servant fell prostrate to the floor again. "Yes, Master."

* * *

Kagome remained unconscious; Inuyasha refused to leave her side and growled savagely at anyone who even suggested it. He would not sleep. As three days passed and Kagome continued not to stir, his mood grew worse and worse, even to the point that the ever-patient Miroku lost his temper on the third morning of their watch and stormed out of the hut, muttering under his breath, "Stubborn, stupid, idiotic hanyou." Sango had left the hut after the second day, taking Shippou with her. The kit was becoming more than just an annoyance to the hanyou; it was safer for Shippou if he was not in Inuyasha's way. They returned on occasion to keep him company and to also talk to Kagome as Kaede had advised, but they did not stay long. Inuyasha's temper was becoming more and more vicious as more time passed, and the best way not to provoke him further was not to be there. 

However, in their absence, they did not hear the gentle way Inuyasha quietly spoke to Kagome when he was alone with her. Only Kaede was a witness to it as she returned to the hut late in the afternoon. Inuyasha's back was to her, and he was so engrossed in talking to Kagome that he never even sensed the old miko's entrance into the hut.

Inuyasha's clawed fingers were gently brushing through her hair, a habit he had picked up in the last few days, as he spoke to her. "Come on, Kagome, you've got to wake up soon. Shippou is driving me nuts. Besides, if you don't, I'll have to beg Sesshamoru to borrow Tensaiga. You know we can't have that. You're the only one who's able to stop me from killing him."

Kaede placed her hand on Inuyasha's shoulder; he jumped upwards with a cry, Tetsusaiga pulled out of its scabbard.

"Damn it, old woman!" he swore harshly, "don't do that!"

"I'm sorry I startled you, Inuyasha," Kaede answered calmly as the inu-youkai sank back down to the floor. "I only brought you some of the food that Sango made." She handed him a bowl of stew and some chopsticks.

Inuyasha took the bowl with a grimace, but did not eat, placing it on the floor beside him

"Thanks," he said, gruffly.

"You are doing the right thing, Inuyasha," Kaede said. "Keep talking to her. She will awaken eventually."

"Keh!" Inuyasha replied. "She should be awake already!"

"Perhaps. Perhaps she is still too frightened to return. Whatever the reason, she trusts you more than anyone else. Your voice will soothe her the most."

"Yeah, whatever you say, old woman," Inuyasha mumbled.

Kaede patted his shoulder and left the hut, a small smile gracing her lips.

On the fifth day of their watch over Kagome, both Sango and Miroku were in the hut, talking to the comatose girl, as Inuyasha dozed lightly in a corner, his back against the wall with Tetsuaiga at his side. Kaede entered the hut followed by a strange man. Inuyasha, sensing the unknown presence, instantly awoke and stood up, his hand on the sword's hilt. Sango and Miroku rose as well.

"This is Yutaro-san," the old priestess said as an introduction. "He comes from another village to ask for aid."

The man bowed. "Please, help," he said in a nervous voice. "I live in a village two days from here. In the last week or so, we have been attacked repeatedly by a pack of jackal youkai. We have heard that you can help us."

"Keh! I'm not leaving Kagome!" Inuyasha declared as he turned his back.

Sango lifted her boomerang from where it lay against the wall as Miroku picked up his staff. They both stared momentarily at the hanyou, but a quiet look between them acknowledged a fact they both already knew. No matter how much they insisted, Inuyasha would not go with them.

"We'll go with you," the monk told the man, bowing slightly.

"Perhaps you should take Shippou with you," Kaedge suggested.

Sango shrugged slightly. "He's been very depressed about Kagome," she said to Miroku. "It might distract him a little if he does come with us."

"Yes," Miroku replied. "Come with us, my good man."

The man followed Sango and Miroku out of the hut. Minutes later, after packing some foodstuffs and some other necessities, they collected Shippou and Kirara and were gone from the village.

* * *

The next night, Inuyasha remained alone in the hut with Kagome; Kaede had left earlier that evening to attend a birthing mother on the other side of the village. He sat with his back against the wall and stared sadly at the sleeping young woman with dark amber eyes, watching her face as she lay in her blankets by one side of the fire. She had grown even thinner during her extended sleep; her pale skin had become almost translucent and her face had a gray pallor to it. 

As Inuyasha continued to gaze at her, he found himself becoming inordinately frightened that he would lose her, that she would never awaken. He stood up and leaned Tetsusaiga against the wall. He walked the few feet to where Kagome lay and laid himself beside her. One finger reached out to caress her cheekbone; her skin felt cold to his touch. "You've got to wake up, Kagome," he whispered pleadingly as he pulled her still form into his arms. "I miss you." He fell asleep moments later after days of watching and waiting, Kagome folded against his heart.

* * *

The first thing that Kagome noticed as sleep slowly drifted away from her was that she was warm, comfortable, and felt like she was in the safest place in the world. As she slowly opened her eyes, she realized she was wrapped in Inuyasha's haori as well as his arms. He held her securely against his chest; she could feel his steady heartbeat against her cheek. 

"Inuyasha," she whispered softly.

Inuyasha's arms immediately tightened around. "It's about time you woke up, wench," he said gruffly, trying to hold back the wave of relief he felt in his voice.

He was unsuccessful. Startled by the tone of his voice and the way he was holding her, Kagome pulled back to look at him. Shock ran through her when she saw his face and eyes.

Inuyasha's eyes were bright with unshed tears.

There had only been one other time when she had seen his tears. On the day that she had been had caught in the temple fire, and he thought she had died…

"Inuyasha," she asked, half-afraid of the answer, "why are you crying?"

He buried his face in her hair. "Keh! Who says I'm crying?" he answered grumpily.

"Inuyasha," Kagome whispered, as she reached up to brush one finger against his ear. It twitched softly in her hand; his arms tightened around her, as if he was afraid to ever let go.

Later that morning, as Kagome ate the first meal she had had in days, Inuyasha told her about finding her unconscious at the bottom of the well. Kaede quietly explained how she had been comatose for days. Miroku, Sango, and Shippou sat by her side as Inuyasha sat against the wall, waiting for her to say something about her experience.

"I'm sorry I worried you all," Kagome said, smiling wanly at her friends. She felt around around her neck where the necklace holding the vial of jewel shards usually hung. "I guess the youkai who attacked me got the jewel shards, too."

"Do you remember anything at all, child?" Kaede asked.

Kagome shook her head, her expression troubled, her shoulders slumped as she pulled away from them. "Please…I don't want to talk about it yet. Please forgive me."

"Don't apologize, Kagome," Sango said, as she gently lay one hand on her friend's arm in reassurance. "You can tell us when you're ready."

"Yeah, it's alright, Kagome," Shippou spoke up. "You don't have to tell us right now."

Kagome looked over at Inuyasha. He did not speak at all, but he nodded once. His eyes told her all she needed to know. He would wait as well.

* * *

It was almost another two weeks before Kagome felt well enough to go home. In the first week of her recovery, she had not been strong enough to even move about Kaede's hut. Inuyasha kept her constant company, making sure she got plenty to eat and lots of rest. Kagome didn't mind the constant attention; Inuyasha was nothing but extremely gentle with her. In the beginning of the second week, she began to take short walks around the village, sometimes even going as far Goshinboku. 

She had a great deal to think about while she got better. And although the others asked her several times to tell them what had occurred at the well, she always shook her head and told them she wasn't ready yet.

Then there were nightmares. They were vicious and brutal and endlessly repeated themselves night and after night. She learned to keep her screams to herself after she woke up Inuyasha one night…

_Inuyasha awoke to the sound of thrashing. Kagome was literally beating herself against the floor of the hut as she slept, her blankets a tangled mess against her body. Alarmed, Inuyasha rushed to her side as she screamed out his name._

_Inuyasha gently shook her shoulder. "Kagome, come on, you've got to wake up," he pleaded gently. When her fists kept pummeling the floor, he grabbed her wrists in his hands, stilling their movement. Kagome gasped, and her eyes flew open. They were glazed and staring. "Inuyasha…?" she asked in a raspy voice._

_"You were having a bad dream," he answered softly, one hand moving down to tenderly clasp her fingers in one hand while the other reached up to touch her cheek. "Are you alright now?"_

_Kagome's eyes suddenly filled with tears. "I kept calling for you; I wanted you to save me, but you never came," she sobbed._

_Inuyasha reached down and hugged her against his chest. She continued to weep, each of her tears a dagger to his heart. He had so wanted to protect her, and when she had needed him the most, he hadn't been there. It was a complete failure on his part, and he would never be free of the guilt. "I'm sorry, Kagome, I'm sorry," he murmured into her hair as he rocked her gently. It was the only thing he could think of to say. It wasn't enough._

_Eventually, her tears lessened, and Inuyasha loosened his hold on her. He lifted her chin with his index finger. "Will you tell me what happened now, Kagome? What happened that day at the well?"_

_She buried her face against his chest again. "No, please don't ask me yet," she pleaded in a strangled voice._

_Inuyasha could not deny her request. He pulled her tighter into his embrace and held her until she fell asleep in his arms. As he let his own weariness take over, he thought to himself, "Someday, you'll tell me, Kagome, and then everything will be alright again."_

Kagome never screamed out in her sleep again, because she couldn't tell him the truth, couldn't let anyone know what had really happened to her at the well.

* * *

Kagome felt like she was getting really better at the end of her second week of recovery when she and Inuyasha had a fight over nothing. The following day, she realized things were really getting back to normal when she announced that she was returning home for a day near the end of the second week, and Inuyasha went into his full stubborn mode. 

"Keh! You promised you would stay the whole summer!" he shouted in her face.

"And I will!" Kagome yelled back. "I haven't been back in three weeks, Inuyasha. My family is probably very worried about me. I'll go back this afternoon and be back by tomorrow morning, okay?" She smiled up at him. "I'll bring back some extra ramen."

"Trying to bribe me, wench? Well, it won't work. I can survive without ramen if I have to."

"Inuyasha…," Kagome began to say.

He recognized that tone of voice instantly. She was getting to ready to "sit" him. It would be the first time she had done that since before the incident at the well. He had grown used to not having to submit to the damn spell, so much so that he did not want to hear that word now or ever again. He capitulated. "Fine, then," he said, as he grabbed her nearly empty knapsnack. Sango had managed to repair most of the damage to it. "I'll walk you there."

* * *

Kagome hesitated as she approached the well. She had to go home; it had been almost three weeks since she had been back. She knew her mother surely was worried about her by now, yet...she was afraid. 

Inuyasha noticed her hesitation, her wide, staring eyes. "I'll go with you, if you want," he said. He could smell her fear, and it frightened him. It had grown steadily worse as they drew closer and closer to the well. He had smelled fear on Kagome before, but this time, it was different. She was terrified. Why was she afraid of the well? It puzzled him. He knew that she had been hurt the last time she traveled through the time slip, but she had been hurt before and still never seemed to lose her spirit. He almost growled in frustration.

Kagome turned to him with wide, staring eyes and wished once again that she had the courage to tell him what had truly happened to her at the well, but she always faltered, afraid to speak the words, terrified of the truth. "Okay," she whispered in reply.

Kagome tried to control her sudden trembling as she reached the side of the well and began to climb over its side. Inuyasha reached out to put one arm around her waist to steady her and felt her shivers. "Kagome?" he asked, his voice laced with deep concern.

Kagome began to shake her head violently, her long, black hair lashing out in every direction. She backed away from the well and from Inuyasha, her hands balled into fists against her head, her eyes drowning in sudden tears. "I can't! I can't!" Without another look back, she turned and fled.

She ran blindly, barely hearing Inuyasha calling her name, but she had to get away, escape from the well, fly from the terror that beat against her soul. She stumbled several times against the tree roots and rocks that lay in her path. Her eyes streaming, her breaths coming in great hitching gasps, she did not see the huge root that reared out from a king oak tree. She tripped and fell. She sprawled helplessly to the ground, her sobs quickening.

A hand touched her back. She screamed and scrambled away.

Inuyasha was shocked at her reaction, but he did not let it show as he reached out toward her. "Shh…it's just me, Kagome," he reassured her softly.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome raised her hands to her eyes, scrubbing at them.

He reached out and gathered her close to his chest. She sobbed against him, holding onto his haori with tight hands. Inuyasha tightened his arms around her, rocking her gently, murmuring words of comfort and reassurance, his lips occasionally brushing against her hair.

It was several minutes before Kagome's crying lessened into softer weeping and then finally seemed to stop. Inuyasha laid one hand against her cheek, tilting her head up so he could see her eyes. They were still wet with dew, but she tried to smile for him. "Kagome," Inuyasha said, his voice soft and gentle, "I know you don't want to tell me why you're so afraid, but I think you should." Kagome shook her head and tried to pull away, but he tightened his hold on her, his embrace preventing her from moving. His hand brushed through her hair as he stared at her unwaveringly. "I've seen it for the last week now, Kagome. You never even went near the well on all those walks…and after what happened just now, I know you're frightened. I want you to tell me why. What has got you scared so much?"

She tried to pull away again. "Please…Inuyasha," she pleaded in a gasping whisper.

"No, Kagome," he said firmly, his grasp on her tightening even further. "I'm not going to let you go until you tell me."

She struggled against him. "I'll say the word," she threatened weakly.

"Keh! Then we'll both be eating dirt," Inuyasha replied. He pushed her hair behind her ear. "Come on, Kagome, you've got to tell someone. If not me, then who?"

Kagome buried her face against his chest. Deep in her heart she knew that Inuyasha was right. She had tell him. There was no one else she could tell, not even Sango or Kaede. She took a deep breath to help steady her wracked nerves and murmured, "I'm afraid…afraid it will happen again."

"What will happen again?" Inuyasha asked her gently. "Of being attacked again? You've been attacked before, Kagome, and never been afraid."

She shook her head against him and then lifted her face to his. Tears were starting to trickle from her eyes once more. "No, that it isn't it, Inuyasha," she whispered. "That isn't it at all." Kagome turned her eyes from his for just a moment, her head hanging down, her face hiding her face from his gaze. If Inuyasha's hearing had been any less sensitive than it was, he would have missed her next words.

"I died, Inuyasha."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Inuyasha belongs to some lucky woman in Japan…I'm just fantasizing.

**Author's Note:** A great big thanks to all those who have reviewed this fic so far: Earth Empress Gardevia, trekker4life, Newbie GK, InuB, Trigger Happy Bibliophile, jenna, NP, and GoldAngel2.

_Moments_

_By Amberle-chan_

Chapter Three

Inuyasha's eyes widened in shock as he stared down at her. He placed one hand against her cheek and forced her to look up at him. Her tears ran down his fingers. "You what?" he demanded, all the gentleness of the moment before lost amidst his overwhelming distress.

Kagome did not turn away from him this time; Inuyasha's anguished amber eyes kept her still. Her voice as it emerged from her throat was gasping and choked, becoming more hysterical by each second that passed. "I died, Inuyasha. I know I did. Something brought me back…I don't know what. I know I died. I don't want to go down the well…I don't, I don't! I'm don't want it to happen again!"

She started to sob once more. Inuyasha crushed her small frame to him. "_She died? Kagome died_?" Inuyasha's mind floundered at the thought, his soul overflowing with more fear than he had ever felt in his life. "Kagome," he gasped out, his heart breaking at the thought that it could have been possible that he would not have been holding her right at that moment. Stunned beyond belief at her revelation, the only thing he could do was hold her as tightly as possible…and never let her go.

Inuyasha held her for a long time, letting her cry out her grief and pain against him. He did not speak at all, somehow knowing that any words spoken would be inadequate to what they were both feeling at the moment. Inuyasha tried to soothe her as best he could, gently brushing his hands through her hair, his thumbs occasionally rubbing soothing circles against her back. Within minutes, her tears dried up and she fell asleep against his chest. When Inuyasha noticed the change in her breathing, he picked her up gently and carried her back toward the village.

Looking down at the young woman he held so tightly in his arms, he whispered, "Don't worry, Kagome. I won't let it happen again. I'll protect you."

* * *

Kaede, Shippo, Sango, and Miroku were all sitting around the firepit in Kaede's hut when Inuyasha entered carrying Kagome.

"Inuyasha!" Kaede cried, instantly alarmed. "Is something wrong with Kagome-chan?"

"No, she's just asleep," Inuyasha reassured the old miko as he kicked open a pallet and laid his precious burden down. He covered her with a blanket before he turned back to his friends.

"I thought Kagome was going back to her own time," Sango said.

"Something…happened," Inuyasha said. He then looked back at the young woman sleeping so peacefully only a few feet away. "I don't think we should talk in here." He turned to the little kitsune, who was looking at Kagome anxiously. "Shippou, you watch over Kagome, ok?"

"Sure, Inuyasha," Shippou replied, taking the pocky he was chewing away from his mouth. He walked over to Kagome and sat down beside her.

Sango rose to her feet as Miroku helped Kaede to stand. She looked back at Shippou and then back at Inuyasha. The inu-youkai's expression was grim, and she knew instantly that Inuyasha did not want to child to hear what they had to say. It had to be serious, because despite the way Inuyasha treated Shippou, they usually talked freely in front of him, and Inuyasha had just given the boy a task that not even a rampaging youkai would tear him away from.

They all followed Inuyasha out of the hut and down to the river. All of his friends gave him curious looks as they walked, their eyes asking a thousand questions. No one spoke until they reached the water's edge. Inuyasha remained quiet as he looked at the departing sun's pink and orange reflection in the water, his hands buried deep in his haori.

Sango broke the silence first. "What's going on, Inuyasha?" the youkai exterminator demanded. "What happened to Kagome? And why can't you talk about it in front of Shippou?"

"I didn't think he should know," Inuyasha replied as he turned back to face them.

"Explain, Inuyasha," Kaede commanded. "What could be so terrible that Shippou should not know about it?"

Inuyasha sighed heavily and hunched down. "Kagome couldn't through the well."

"It was closed?" Miroku asked, perturbed. "Shippou would hardly find that upsetting, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha shook his head, a pained grimace crossing his features. "No, that's not it. Kagome was afraid to go through. Terrified, actually. She ran away from the well, as fast as I've ever seen her run. When I finally caught up to her, she wouldn't tell me what was wrong at first, but when I finally convinced her to…," his voice faltered.

Inuyasha stood up and began to pace around the riverbank in ever-widening circles, as if he was trying to escape what he had to tell them. His eyes and expression were a jumble of dread, grief, and barely contained fury.

Sango watched her friend in growing horror. She could see that the inu-youkai was shaking, his fists clenched so hard against his palms that his claws were raising up bloody welts. What had happened at the well? What had Kagome told him? She could see his trembling worsen each time he passed near her. She had never seen Inuyasha so upset before.

Sango reached out to him, touching his arm lightly, halting his movements. She could feel his tremors underneath her fingers "Inuyasha?" she begged quietly.

"She said that she died."

Three audible gasps escaped into the early evening air. "What?" his three companions exclaimed.

"She said that she died and was somehow brought back. That fucking youkai who choked her really did kill her." Inuyasha's voice trailed off for a moment as he tried to get himself under control. He grasped the Tetsusaiga's hilt hard, trying to restrain the fury he was feeling, knowing that his blood was so fevered with anger that he was ready to transform. He took several deep breaths before he continued. "She doesn't know what happened, how she was brought back, but something did." Inuyasha bowed his head, as his rage suddenly morphed into intense relief. "_And I will always thank Kami-sama for whatever brought her back to me_," he thought to himself.

Kaede tapped one finger against her chin. "If that's true, it would explain much," the priestess commented.

"Hai," Miroku agreed.

"What are you talking about?" Inuyasha demanded.

Kaede turned her full attention to the inu-youkai. "Inuyasha, when you brought Kagome back that day, I told you that her spirit was far away. Miroku and I had to call her back."

Miroku laid one hand on Inuyasha's arm. "It's as if she had died, her body had reawoken, but her spirit was lost. Both Kaede and I could feel that, how lost she was."

"Yeah, but she's back now. That's all that matters," Inuyasha said gruffly.

Miroku nodded in reply. "Yes, it is, my friend. But why is she afraid of the well now?"

"Keh! I told you. She said she died there! Wouldn't you be scared to go back to where you died?"

"This is not good," Kaede said. "Kagome cannot stay here because of her fear. She will need to go home eventually."

"What for?" Inuyasha asked. "She can live here."

"Inuyasha, even though I know you wish for Kagome to stay here forever, this is not her home. What about her family? Do you want them to think that perhaps that something bad has happened to her? To fear that perhaps she is dead?" Kaede replied.

Inuyasha's ears drooped. "No," he said sadly, but then he instantly brightened. "I can go myself and explain!"

"Explain what, Inuyasha?" Miroku interjected. "That Kagome was attacked by a youkai and died? And that now she's afraid to go home? Don't you think that will worry them also? Kagome needs to do this herself."

Inuyasha resumed his pacing for several moments, until he suddenly halted, his expression a mixture of rage and determination. "We need to find that youkai," he stated.

"And just how would that help Kagome?" Miroku asked.

"Keh! I don't know!" Inuyasha answered hotly, and then abruptly turned around to face the monk. "But maybe, it will! If I kill it, maybe Kagome won't be afraid anymore. We've got to go after it anyway. It's got two jewel shards, remember?"

"That's easier said than done," Sango commented. "It's been almost three weeks; it could be anywhere by now."

"Keh! Then we'd better get an early start in the morning," Inuyasha replied as he walked back toward the village.

Sango and Miroku shared a look, knowing that they could not say anything to convince the hanyou that such a search could prove fruitless. They both sighed audibly at the same time before going off to make preparations for what would possibly be a long and arduous journey. Kaede went off to the fields, to gather some of the medicinal herbs they would need.

When Inuyasha returned to the hut, Kagome was just waking up from her short nap, rubbing her eyes and yawning. Shippou had fallen asleep next to her.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked in sleepy voice as he stooped over the cooking pot and began to fill a bowl. He then shoved the bowl into her hands with a pair of chopsticks.

"Eat that and get some more sleep, Kagome," he ordered her. "We're leaving in the morning."

"Whatever for?"

"Keh! We've been sitting around here for the last three weeks, and you're well enough to travel now. We're going after that bastard who stole those jewel shards from you," he replied.

Kagome did not reply, but she nodded. She began to eat her dinner, watching as Inuyasha sank against the nearest wall, Tetsusaiga held against his chest. He gazed at her while she ate, his concern for her well-being lacing the air of the hut with its intensity, and yet he did not ask her any more questions. Kagome felt his eyes watching her, knowing that he was restraining himself to force her to talk more about the incident. She ate her dinner quietly, grateful that he was keeping silent. She was tired and overstressed, and didn't have the strength to talk about it anymore. When she finished eating, she put the bowl aside and wrapped herself in her blankets again. She whispered, "Good night, Inuyasha," and fell asleep within moments.

Inuyasha's thoughts were a churning mess inside his head as he stared at Kagome as she ate her dinner. He could not keep his eyes off of her. When he had heard those words from her, "_I died Inuyasha_," it had been like someone had wrapped a vise around his heart and tightened it until he could not feel the blood pumping through his veins.

In the two years he had known Kagome, he had come to care for her a great deal, more than he had ever thought possible, more than he was willing to admit both to himself and to her. Some called her "Kikyo's replacement," but in his soul he knew that Kagome had never replaced Kikyo. Kagome had eclipsed his love for Kikyo. Kikyo was his past; Kagome was his present and future. Simply because she loved him as he was and had not asked him to change.

He remembered the time he had thought she had died in the temple fire and the immense relief he felt when she had stirred in his arms. Yet, somehow, this time, it was more than that. The knowledge that she had really died had slit open his heart and left his soul bleeding. As he had held her close to him as she cried that afternoon after her revelation, he realized how precious she had become to him. That as many times as he claimed that he would protect her and had protected her, he would do anything to keep her safe.

When he heard Kagome's breathing deepen into the evenness of sleep, he stood up, placed Tetsusaiga against the wall, and went to lay down by her side. He gently brushed her hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. His amber eyes were tender as he gazed at her. "I'll always take care of you, Kagome," he whispered. "I won't anything like that ever happen to you again."

* * *

Early the next morning, while the others were making final preparations for their journey, Inuyasha pulled Kagome aside and dragged her outside the hut. Without saying a word, he lifted her onto his back and ran into his forest.

"Inuyasha, where are you taking me?" Kagome demanded.

He didn't answer her but continued to sprint through the trees. Kagome huffed against his shoulder in frustration. "I thought you said we had to leave early."

"Keh! There's something we got to do first before we can leave," Inuyasha replied. He didn't speak again until they had reached the foot of Goshinboku and he had leapt into its branches. After he settled her against the trunk of the tree, he crossed his arms into his haori sleeves, his face set into a stubborn frown. "Now, talk."

"About what?"

"Don't give me that!" Inuyasha exclaimed. "You know about what!"

"You know, Inuyasha," Kagome retaliated, through gritted teeth, "no matter what you think, I am not a mind reader! Talk about what?"

Inuyasha's expression softened just a fraction. "You've got to tell me, Kagome. Tell me about what happened at the well."

Kagome's eyes brightened, her chin came up defiantly, as she backed up further along the tree branch. "Why are you asking me this? I already told you!" she cried, holding back a choked sob. "I don't want to talk about it anymore!"

Inuyasha shifted and grabbed her hands. He stared at her, his eyes changing their hue into a deep amber color. "You've got to, Kagome," he said, his voice gently persuasive. He paused for a moment as Kagome turned her face away. "I know you don't want to, but if you don't tell me, we'll never find that youkai. You never even said what kind of youkai it was."

"You just want to get the shards back," Kagome muttered, a hint of anger in her voice as she tugged her hands away from his.

"Keh! Come on, you know better than that!" Inuyasha answered as he reached out and gently turned her face back to his. He could see all the hurt she was feeling in her eyes. He knew exactly what Kagome was doing; she was trying to come up with any excuse not to discuss the subject, but it was not going to work this time. "Why do I think I brought you out here? So no one else could hear you but me."

Kagome shook her head vigorously back and forth, her eyelids closed up tight. Inuyasha wrapped an arm around her shoulders and held her close. Kagome fell against him and began to cry. Inuyasha let her weep for a few moments longer before he spoke again.

"I'm gonna fix this, Kagome. I'm gonna fix it so this youkai will never hurt you again," he whispered, his voice a soft growl against her hair, "but you've got to tell me first before I can."

Kagome sniffed loudly and pulled back from him, her hands scrubbing away the tears from her eyes. Her head slumped down, her fingers twisting and turning in her lap. Could Inuyasha "fix it" as he put it? Would finding the youkai who had killed her help her go through the well again? Would she be able to go home again?

Kagome shivered; Inuyasha instinctively wrapped his arms around her tighter. Kagome could feel his strength, not just his physical strength but that of his heart as well. She leaned on him, and with all of her failing strength, she pushed the terror and the pain she had felt at the moment of her death away. She lifted her chin and stared into his eyes, half afraid if she did not tell him now, she would never tell him at all.

"He had only one eye," she said in a soft voice, "but I don't know what kind of youkai he was. I was so scared, Inuyasha…," her voice hesitated; Inuyasha's grip around her tightened further. She was safe. "I can't remember that much, but there is one thing I do remember. He kept changing color."

Inuyasha stared back at her. "Changing color?" he asked, puzzled.

Kagome looked away and chewed nervously on her lower lip. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha," she said in a small voice. "I can't remember anything else."

"It's okay, Kagome," Inuyasha told her reassuringly as he gathered her back against his chest. "It will be enough."


End file.
